Growing up, I was raised by my mom, a single mom who was going back to school to become a nurse, while also raising three very rambunctious children. My mom is a loving, compassionate woman, but she also is a fighter. She taught me so much, like how to stand up for myself and others when people and systems were unfair. She taught me that it is okay to be angry, and how to use this anger to try and make things better. READ MORE

The Canadian literature community has been rocked by an open letter, signed by many prominent writers, claiming the University of British Columbia has failed to give “due process” to a writing professor dismissed for breach of trust in relation to allegations of abuse by students. Critics of the letter say it is biased and erases the experience of the students. READ MORE

A new ep. of Shameless Talks is here! Hosted by our arts editor, Julia De Laurentiis Johnson, this podcast is an accessory to our print issues and will bring you even more of the kind of smart & fierce discussion you’ve come to expect from the pages of Shameless.
In this episode, we’re talking music! You’ll hear from Brighid Fry, a teen singer-songwriter, on learning how to get good at it and about what to … READ MORE

Identifying as femme has never made navigating my community easy, in spite of this being the only label that has ever felt entirely right. Being a femme has often meant attending queer events only to be read as a tagalong straight friend, having to prove and reassert my queerness, and continually fighting for visibility.
I cannot speak about femme invisibility without addressing the intersections between femmephobia and other oppressions like racism, ableism, transphobia, and fatphobia. As … READ MORE

An inclusive and enriching program, Sister Writes’ Creative Writing Bootcamp for Transwomen is a two-day intensive writing experience. Practice writing in a variety of genres, receive mentorship from professional authors, write and share stories in a supportive group environment, co-create a literary magazine, and collaborate with professional artists. Join Sister Writes on Saturday October 22 and Saturday 29th, 3:30 – 7:30 pm, at The 519.
Register by writing to donna@sisterwrites.com.
About Sister Writes:
Since 2010, Sister Writes … READ MORE

Once upon a time, there was a tradition at the beginning of every college/university term: students would descend on their campus bookstores, syllabi in hand, and walk out with bags full of heavy, expensive textbooks. Maybe they got lucky and found used copies of the books they needed or ran into another student selling their books from last term, which eased the financial burden slightly. Still, they were usually out hundreds of dollars. At the end of the semester, the student would sell their books back to the bookstore, or to others at their school, but they’d only recover a fraction of what they spent. READ MORE